How To Retire In Comfort

Did you at an early age learn how to retire in comfort? Did you have a Mentor who showed you how to plan for your retirement needs while you were still young?

I'm sad to say that very few Baby Boomers who are now leaving the workforce have prepared well enough, with enough money and security to enjoy a truly comfortable retirement for the rest of their lives.

And that includes me! I am incredibly fortunate that I have somehow been able to scratch together enough retirement investments to be able to retire early. When I reach the official retirement age I will also benefit from a pension and some Superannuation that is saved up.

But I truly wish that someone had sat me down in my late teens and explained that the likelihood of a husband being there to secure my financial retirement was nil to zero. We have to wake up to the fact that we must be totally self-reliant when it comes to securing our individual retirement income.

Then if you are fortunate to retire with the support of a partner, it is a bonus. But just "hoping and wishing" that you can win the lottery or some other quick way to retire in comfort, is going to leave you in the sticky situation of having to learn how to retire without money - and that is not easy!

Having
enough money put away for retirement is something everyone should seriously
consider from the very first day you begin your working life.

There are a lot of factors that
should be considered if one intends to live in the same lifestyle as they do now, after
retirement. You should also be planning for ways to secure your health and mental wellbeing, so that you can truly enjoy this stage of your life.

I will be continually adding more retirement planning resources to this section, but what is here now is a good starting point for you to begin the process with.

How
to Begin Planning Your Retirement

Comfortable retirement is
all about planning. With proper planning processes in place anyone can retire
in the same comfort they enjoyed as working adults or at the very least in a
somewhat similar fashion.

The
following are some of the planning points that can be exercised as early as
possible to ensure retirement in the desired fashion:

Saving
– this is the most effective and definite way to ensure a comfortable life as a
retired person. These saving put aside should be done in a fashion where it
cannot be utilized for any other emergencies or purposes.

The
amount of money put aside should also take into account the depreciation rate
that the said money would eventually incur. The necessary adjustment should be
made to ensure its sufficiency.

Retirement
is an expensive situation to be in, especially if there is no comprehensive and
strong medical coverage for the individual.

Therefore
it is equally important to have good medical coverage policies in place to
cover the individual well into old age.

Starting such policies at a young age
will ensure the individual is not required to pay hefty premiums when compared
to others who take out a policy later in age.

Most
employees and governing bodies are more than willing to assist the individual
in starting a suitable retirement plan to make sure they know how to retire in comfort. Such plans can be serviced through the
specific periodic deductions of an individual’s salary.

For those who are
unable to grasp the importance to a retirement plan, these deductions can often
seem rather unnecessary and quite high, but upon some closer understanding of
the retirement phase of an individual, these periodic deductions will not seem
so daunting.

For
some property investment is one option toward funds put away for retirement.

This is not a style of investment that is suitable for the average person, but
nonetheless it is a good option to look into if there is a possibility of being
able to invest.

Retirement Calculator Guide

Retirement:
how much to save?

A lot of the calculations
done should be noted for its projected style and reference base and not really
something absolutely concrete and credible.

These are informed and intelligent
suppositions based of reliable information, and at the very least it is a
guideline of what to expect from the investment in future terms.

This is the most basic and simplest calculations which
normally do not take into account any other corresponding effects that may
occur sometime in the future.

There is also the possibility of calculating
the interest by multiplying what is earned within a year, against the total
number of years the individual intents to hold the investments for.

The
intended time frame for the investment will dictate the amount enjoyed at the
end of the period stated.

Compound
interest – these kinds of investments are calculated in a clearer and more
stable way.

The annual interest rates are calculated by adding the principal
sum to the interest percentage which is them multiplied by the principle
investment amount.

In
most cases the interest is fairly stable and quite commitive in manner.

At
the end of all the different calculation done the individual ideal target
amount for the retirement phase in life should be nothing less than 60% of the
current income being enjoyed.

If
the amount is bumped up to an ideal 80% then the individual is considered to be
able to enjoy a very good and comfortable retirement phase indeed.

Other
expenses that are also commonly incurred if the retirement phase is well planned
for such as travelling, medical and leisure activities that can be rather
costly would also have to be taken into account and provided for adequately.

Therefore
it is important to consider all sources of current income to be tagged as
possible sources for future savings.

Calculate Future Expenses

What Will It Cost?

Everyday existence cost
money and this is no different when an individual is retired.

Therefore future
expenses should also be calculated when an individual is still in the working
phase in life to ensure the retirement phase quality of life is not severely
compromised by poor income sources.

Everything has to be taken into account when
drawing up a current annual expenses plan.

As there are always additional
needs, the additional income needed or expected should also be factored into
the plan to better facilitate calculations.

Then the next step would be to measure these
figures against the Consumer Price Index, as these indexes provide information
for the purpose of being able to make assessments.

The index projects the measured increase in
the cost of commonly used goods and then the CPI makes the necessary cost of
living adjustments for the Social Security.

There are several sites available and experts
that can assist in this exercise should the individual need such assistance in learning how to retire in comfort.

Studying the various estimation tables drawn
up at these sites will give the individual some idea of the connections between
markets, labor and costs these two elements effect thus also providing an
overview of what to expect for the future.

When perusing the “all items” section of the
CPI the individual should be able to multiply the numbers given with the
current annual expenses already drawn up for the necessary figured that
estimate the future costs and expenses frame.

Most of the information provided at these
sites are kept well updated and thus giving the individual real time
information. This is very helpful when estimations and concessions made will
eventually impact the quality of the retirement phase of the individual’s life.

These calculations should ideally be done on
a yearly basis, to get a better estimation and working frame of figures to
assess the needed adjustments that each fiscal year will definitely bring.

401K – Superannuation fund - Investments

401K or Superannuation, is basically a government approved
retirement saving platform that allows an individual to put away money for the
future retirement phase is life.

This is meant to facilitate the somewhat ideal
quality of the retirement lifestyle most people would ideally want to enjoy.

Investing for Your Retirement

Most people look upon the 401k as a form of
“free money” usually given by the employer. This money is directed to a pension
style account and not literally given to the individual in present time frames.

A portion of the funds meant to be part of
the salary “extras “earned is taken away on a monthly basis, and deposited into
these retirement accounts, whereby the individual can only enjoy these deducted
amounts upon retirement.

In a way, it is a form of forced saving and
most employees will look favorably upon any employee who is willing to pay high
percentages into this account.

The tax on such allocations will also be
considerably lower as part of the incentive program on the governments behalf.

Therefore this would seem like an ideal savings option for retirement as the
tax is not calculated until the actual funds are retrieved, and even so the tax
is considerably lower and than usual amount calculated if such payments were to
be made to the employee directly as part of the monthly salary received.

Another advantage the 401K and Superannuation is that the deductions are done in an automatic fashion and there is
no need to remember or to physically make such arrangements on a monthly basis,
therefore presenting a very convenient option indeed.

One of the first things you should check out when you know how much you need for how to retire in comfort is to work out if there is any way that you can make extra top-up payments as personal contributions to your retirement savings fund.

For instance, in Australia you can make additional payment of a few thousand dollars a year to your Superannuation fund and those payments are not included in your annual Taxable income calculations, so that can also mean a massive saving in your annual tax payments from your overall salary each year.

Cutting Expenses
And Putting Money In Savings

If you are disciplined enough the ideal
situation or mindset would be to cut as much as possible spending and expenses
budgets to facilitate higher savings possibilities.

This of course is by no
means easy, and most of the time it fails to materializes in a disciplined
fashion, that is consistent over a long period of time.

Having
some tools in place to ensure such savings are done in an unwavering and
committed fashion will be very beneficial to the individual in the future
though it may not always seem so in the present.

Learning
how to identify and cut unnecessary expenses may be difficult to do, but with
consistent practice there is always a possibility in being able to cultivate
the positive action into a beneficial habit.

Here on this site you will find a section with some very comprehensive ways to save money, cut costs, and generally life life in a frugal way while still enjoying an abundant lifestyle.

When
such expenses have been identified, and steps are taken to enforce the
cutbacks, the said fund should then be directed into a saving plan that cannot
be accessed by the individual easily.

This
is due to the fact that there is always be some emergency or another that will
require the funds to be tapped into thus eventually leaving the amount less
than desirable.

Therefore
finding a savings plan that is both fairly committing in style and also one
that has all the benefits that would ensure the funds put away accumulate the
desired projected interests and the likes, should be a top priority.

Identifying
the monthly expenses and breaking it down in a very realistic and committed
fashion, will help the individual identify some of the expenses that can be
eliminated or down sized and yet still keep the individual is relative comfort
and enjoyment, during the working phase of the adult life.

This
is important so that the individual will not feel resentment of having to be
constantly pressured to save for the future, while not being able to enjoy the
present.

Think About Your
Future Health Care

Most people plan their
retirements without actually taking into account the realism of the health care
issues that might arise in the phase in life.

Medical care is not only very
costly but can also be quite a nightmarish affair.

Therefore when planning for
retirement there should be a very effective and functional medical plan
included in the plans.

For most people the most common choice would be to take
out an insurance heath plan that will ideally cover such needs during retirement.

However this is not always adequate as many poorly
informed individual can attest to.

Most people depend on the advice and
directions given by agents who supposedly act in the best interest of the
individual, but in most cases the fine print on the policies will dictate
otherwise.

Therefore it is important to be as well informed as
possible on the policy choices before making a commitment to any plan.

Starting with a suitable fidelity investment summary will
help to give the individual some helpful guidelines towards calculating the
estimates of the retirement costs and determine the percentages suitable to be
included for health coverage.

Disability insurance is another option that is also very
popular and should be carefully considered for its more obvious benefits. There
is no disadvantage to looking into such possibilities even if its percentage of
unfolding is rather limited.

Being ready for any health issues, that might arise just
before or during retirement, is something that should be considered with a
certain amount of urgency tagged to it.

It is also wise to consider some form
of long term care insurance. This will help to ensure the individual is able to
have access to proper and consistent health care that is of a better quality.

These may include after care and 24hour assisted medical
help, should any illnesses occur during the retirement stage.

You should start investing in good healthcare cover or insurance as early as you can, so that you can benefit from being an early member.

Otherwise if you don't start paying health insurance cover until you are in your retirement age the premiums are usually at the highest end of the payment scale and can cost you a huge chunk of your retirement budget.

Understand
Social Security & Your Pension

Simply put, your Social Security payment or Pension is an income to be
enjoyed during retirement or any other phase in the adult life where normal
working conditions cannot be expected due to illness or certain forms of
disabilities.

However, ideally social security income should not be the only
income to be enjoyed by this section of society.

Studies have shown that it is
far from being adequate. It usually meant to function as an assisting source of
income and it would be a folly to make it the only source of income for the
retired individual.

The
following are some of the benefits to be enjoyed as a social security
benefactor:

A
retirement income upon reaching the age of 65, though this may vary in different
parts of the country. Sometimes, like in Australia, women get to qualify for the pension at an earlier age than men. This means that I can start getting the pension at age 60 while men have to wait til they are 65.

Such income can be received in the form of fortnightly or monthly
payments to help you throughout retirement.

There
is also the rather surprising and equally beneficial payment that can be
received by the spouse of the social security subscriber even though the spouse
has not actively contributed to such a fund.

There
is also some form of medical support given to the individual seeking such
assistance during the retirement phase of his or her life.

However
it should be noted here, that this assistance may not be optimum care nor will
it be available instantaneously, unless the individual is in a critical condition
where immediate attention is imperative.

There
is also the benefit of being able to receive full medical care from the system
that is designed to cater to such retirement age needs.

This is also usually
extended to the spouse who may not have contributed in any way to the social
security plan.

There
are also allocations made to accommodate any disabled, minor or dependent
children even after the death of the social security contributor.

Here in Australia we have Medicare, which is a Government Health fund that we
contribute to throughout our working careers, that still covers most
medical costs in our 'old age' when we no longer contribute to the fund.

Start a second income online business before your retire

Seriously, even if you barely know how to send an email, this is the time to get cracking on building an online business, before you really need the income from it.

It is a fact that you can supplement your retirement income with a few hundred dollars a week extra, without having to become an "Internet Guru".

You just need to start learning how to market stuff online, with internet marketing tools available for affiliate marketing, or to create your own blog or website that has a loyal following of readers who trust your product reviews to guide them to make informed choices when they shop online.

It is simpler than you think. But not as easy as some slick online salesmen try to tell you.

There is a learning curve, but that is why you should start building your online business NOW, so that it is profitable for you by the time you retire.

This site will be adding more and more online business resources that are trustworthy sources of information. No get rich quick rubbish from me, thank you. It will take work, but it could mean all the difference between just surviving, or being able to retire comfortably.

Become educated so
that you will be able to meet your retirement goals

It is up to you to work out what you need to be able to retire comfortably.

Once you have decided what your requirements are, where you want to live, in what kind of home, in what country, and on what budget, then you can start to work out your retirement plan of action,

You will need as much quality information as you can get your hands on to work out how to retire in comfort, so don't cut corners when it comes to sourcing good information from experts, or when buying online retirement guides to help you work it all out.

Retirement Resources for how to retire in comfort:

Here are a few retirement planning resources I have found online that you can check out.

More Tips for How To Do It Yourself: Money Matters

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professionals in legal, business, accounting and finance fields and get the best professional advice to learn how to retire in comfort.